Advising

Incoming students will meet with the class advisors individually at the beginning of each semester to plan their initial program of graduate study. Class advisors will be available to meet with students at any time during their graduate career.

The class advisors will lead a week-long orientation for incoming students at the end of August. The orientation will include a set of lectures and campus tours that will introduce students to the many resources at and around Harvard and will answer their questions regarding research, academics and the graduate program. Students will also be paired with a senior graduate student mentor during the orientation.

After the first year, a student will either choose a single faculty member as their dissertation advisor or initiate a collaboration between two or more labs. Students may choose dissertation advisors from any science department at Harvard, including the research departments of the 11 Harvard-affiliated teaching hospitals.